My First Exposure to Fun Rallies
Johan van der Spuy

I am a student pilot who has nearly completed his PPL – for the second time (it’s a long story). I guess, like most other students, I yearn for the day that I have a license to fly – by myself, where I want to, when I want to – and to REALLY start learning. To fly accurately. To navigate confidently. To know my aeroplane.

I can’t see myself endlessly taking friends up for a ‘flip’ around the patch every weekend. Or, going ‘cross country’ by picking a destination, feeding the ICAO designator into a GPS and following the purple highway on the screen.

So what to do after the PPL? Night rating – yes. Taildragger – yes. Aerobatics – yes (limited mind you!)

Rallying – What?

Maybe… but how do I learn what it’s about?

That’s why I went to Rand Airport on the morning of the 29th January – I heard they were holding the Rand Airport Challenge Fun Rally. Hopefully I could speak to someone who could tell me what it’s about and maybe even get the route, and a copy of the “check point” photos – and sit in a quiet corner by myself and try and figure it out…… boy was I in for a surprise.

Mary De Klerk and Frank Eckard – Professionals. They run the fantastic SAPFA Fun Rally calendar. When I introduced myself to Mary, her enthusiasm for the sport is so evident that it is instantaneously contagious. “ Let’s see if we can get you to fly with someone!” she said.

And that’s where my day, and possibly my future flying career, changed dramatically. One minute I was hoping to stand in a corner and imbibe some wisdom from the REAL pilots, and the next I was being introduced to Mike Cathro who was hitherto flying by himself, but now offering me a seat in Jabiru ZU-CHJ, owned by Esmond Erasmus. I felt apprehensive, and frankly, rather intimidated by my surroundings and company.

But I was put at ease very quickly, by everybody involved. Mike Cathro, I learnt, is and experienced pilot, instructor, and rally participant. His planning was as meticulous as his explanation to me about what was to happen. We set our clocks to the “master” clock, collected a Track Logger and headed to the plane. Even before we had started up, I was learning from Mike – he is an excellent teacher. Our scheduled take off time was 11:10B and we had to cross the start at 11:20. According to the logger, we were airborne at 11:09:58 and crossed the start overhead Rand Water (T-junction Impala Rd and Klipriver Rd) at 11:20:02 – that is how accurately Mike flew ! The whole way! Man, that cockpit gets busy. This was flying – making the plane go exactly where it is supposed to, exactly when it is supposed to.

The route took us nearly directly south. Check Point one – a farm house near Allewynspoort. Got it. Check point two – a creek confluence in Henley-on-Klip. Got it. CP3. CP4. Now, follow the Vaal River, so precisely, all the way to the Dam Wall. 11:58:16 ETA and we were 13 seconds late! It seemed to bother Mike, but I was quietly stunned at how accurately one can Fly! We turned north again at the Eastern shores of the Vaal Dam and headed to CP7, thence to the west of Suikerbosrand Game Reserve. All the while, keeping a strained eye out for the Photos we had to identify on each leg.

“There! Is that the School we are looking for?”. “Nope, not quite. And that one?” . “Yes –that’s it. Time? Distance? Mark it down.”

All in all, we – well, Mike – only had eight time penalties, and we –Mike- only missed three leg photos , giving us a total of 108 penalty points and a Win ! First Place !

So how is that for a stunning day? Went to Rand to maybe be around pilots and photograph some planes – and end up being in the winning plane of the Rand Airport Challenge! Not in my best imaginary scenario did I hope to learn as much as I actually did in one morning.

So, if you’ve ever thought that maybe you should look into joining a fun rally, DO IT ! It really is fun – but more importantly you will learn to sharpen a variety of skills, and learn a lot about flying precisely.

Thanks a million to Mike Cathro, and Esmond. And thanks to Mary de Klerk and Frank Eckard for the fantastic introduction to Rallying. Thanks also to sponsors Karcher, Avimaps and AP.

I will be doing more Fun Rallies soon, when I have my PPL.

Johan
 
EVENT   7th Rand Airport Challenge                  
DATE   29-Jan-11 RAND AIRPORT              
CLASS   Fun                    
                         
POSITION FILE PILOT NAVIGATOR CALL SIGN COUNTRY OBS NAV LANDINGS OTHER TOTAL CP5 CP8
1 9 Mike Cathro Johan van der Spy ZU CHJ 0 100 8 0 0 108 13 12.5
2 10 Sean Murphy Ernie Alexander ZS-IRL 0 230 1 0 0 231 5 -2.4
3 3 Rudi Greyling Peter Lonie ZULUZ 0 420 1 0 0 421 -13 -2.3
4 2 Phil Wakeley Scot Wakeley ZS-LLH 0 300 167 0 0 467 -16 -33.0
5 5 Alan Stewart Richard Cook ZU-FGV 0 270 208 0 0 478 -4 -43.5
6 11 Rob Kennedy Neil Voster ZU-FHD 0 270 258 0 0 528 3 -7.0
7 8 Johan Goosen Esmond Erasmus ZS-RXF 0 435 247 0 0 682 9 21.9
8 7 Rob Jonkers Elana Jacobs ZS-KEZ 0 415 492 0 0 907 21 -25.7
9 1 Federica de’ Micheli Edwrads Donald O’Connor ZS-ORO 0 640 743 0 0 1383 26 69.9
10 4 Mike Harrison Chantelle Meiring ZU-SMP 0         Did not start    
Virtual                        
1 16 Freek Stegman Mary de Klerk             Virtual    

Johan Juselius
Johan Juselius

Committee Member 2011 to 2012

 

Deon Loots

Committee Member 2011 to 2012

 

Aero Club of South Africa – Silver Wings

Robin Spencer-Scarr

Robin Spencer-Scarr started flying in 1984 and obtained his fixed wing license in that year. He is also a qualified helicopter pilot. He has in excess of 2 500 hours in a number of different types of aircraft.

He has been active in promoting sport and recreational aviation over a long period of time and has represented South Africa in Rally Flying. He was part of the team that earned Gold for South Africa in 2003.

Robin has served on the South African Power Flying Association Committee for an unbroken period of seven years. During this period he took over responsibility for running the President’s Trophy Air Race, giving this event the continuity that it lacked in the past. This event, the most prestigious Air Race in the World, requires high levels of organisation and safety. Robin has the unique ability to ensure that the event runs smoothly but at the same time he manages to inject fun and humour which makes it an event for the competitors. This has resulted in the Race growing in popularity over the years he has been in charge. This growth in popularity is clearly demonstrated by the fact that the 2010 Race had a waiting list in excess of thirty aircraft.

Robin (also known as Mr Air Race) is a worthy recipient of Silver Wings.

Click here for more picturesBrits, 25 – 27 November 2010
By Adrian Pilling
Well can you believe it another year has passed and another National Championships has come and gone. Once again the ever-willing Brits Flying Club stepped up to the plate and offered their considerable experience and dedication in hosting the event.
Brits has a well-earned reputation when it comes to running competitions, and as expected the event went off like clockwork. This is great news as Brits will be the host airfield for the 20th FAI World Precision Flying Championships in October 2011. It would be difficult to imagine a better-prepared group of dedicated individuals to welcome our International colleagues!

Throughout the week the pilots flew in from all the corners of the province – and the country – to prepare for battle.

Wednesday 25th November
The official briefing took place at the clubhouse on Wednesday evening. Pilots old and new listened in much the same way passengers old and new attend commercial in-flight briefings – with a focus proportionate to their inexperience. Tony and Deon explained the proceedings in detail and Frank opened the competition in his capacity as Chairman of SAPFA. An informal dinner was enjoyed and the pilots retired for the evening.

Thursday 26th November
Before commencement of competition, the official briefing was held in the tent provided by our generous sponsors at the African Outdoor Group (AOG). It started promptly at 8am after which the pilots scattered to their various corners in anticipation of their start times.

The first papers were presented at 9am sharp and the pilots began their plotting. Route “blue” consisted of nine legs, plenty of interesting countryside and some challenging turning points. It started just to the east of the airfield and routed in a clockwise direction around the Brits area. The first pilot exited the flight planning hangar at 10am and was airborne by 10h15. Subsequent departures followed in businesslike fashion at intervals of five minutes.

On return each pilot was immediately debriefed by Jacques and Tony in the AOG rig. Jacques took care of the observation and Tony dealt with the timing. Within minutes of landing each pilot had his full score.

There were some tense moments in the program when some of the pilots almost departed without their loggers. This device is critical to the flight as it shows the track and timing to the judges. So without it the pilot would have earned a maximum score – and as with golf, that’s a bad thing.

The organisers faced some interesting challenges. Barry de Groot arrived from Durban in the afternoon, having been delayed by weather. He had to be briefed, issued with his papers and fitted in. Jan Hanekom suffered a mechanical problem but it was soon arranged that he could share ZS-IWD which then had to fly three times. So getting it all together so well is a real tribute to the organisers.

Some of the pilots were surprised to see how many penalties they had racked up at the secret timing points. Several pilots missing the timing gates altogether!!!
Once all the pilots had returned the provisional results were announced. A period of time was allowed for the protests and after they were lodged with the organisers the pilots retired for the night as the results would only be posted the next morning. This procedure laid out the pattern for the remainder of the competition.

Friday 27th November
The pilot briefing was again held at 8am in the AOG tent and the final results of Day 1 were announced. There were some surprises and a few position changes from the provisional results.
The official standings for Day 1 were:
Hans Schwebel 409
Ron Stirk 489
Mary de Klerk 522
Jan Hanekom 629
Frank Eckard 733
Jonty Esser 752
Adrian Pilling 758
Barry de Groot 832
Closely followed by Walter Walle, Mike Cathro, Steve Van Der Merwe, Rob Kennedy and Thys Van Der Merwe.

With these results in mind, the earliest pilot took off at 10h15 to maintain or regain position. Route “red” proved to be more challenging taking the competitors around Hartebeespoort Dam and over the Magaliesberg. The photos were particularly cunning and some of the checkpoints were a real challenge. On return, some of the pilots were shaking their heads in disbelief, while others were grinning widely.
This day brought no protests, and so the provisional results were declared final. They were as follows:
Frank Eckard 304
Adrian Pilling 455
Barry de Groot 491
Mary de Klerk 499
Jan Hanekom 592
Ron Stirk 652
Hans Schwebel 784
Jonty Esser 1134
Closely followed by Rob Kennedy, Walter Walle, Mike Cathro, Thys Van Der Merwe and Steve Van Der Merwe.

So as those of you reading with calculators in hand will know, at this point there were just 200 points separating the top four contenders. The pilots and their families went out for a well-deserved supper in Brits town.

Saturday 27th Nov
Saturday was always going to be interesting. There were to be three competitions held on the same day. The landings portion of the South African National Precision Flying Championships, the South African National Landing Championships and the Virtual Flyers Landing Championships, all at the same time.

The briefing at 8am was a complicated affair, covering all three upcoming events. The microlight pilots were well represented as part of the National Landing Championships event. Tony explained that each competitor would be flying eight landings. The plan was for each pilot to fly two circuits and landings, take a short break and repeat. After lunch another four landings would be flown, again in sets of two.

Given the lesser tolerance for wind of the microlights, proceedings were changed to allow them to fly all eight landings in one set. For the power flyers it was understood that all eight landings would count towards the National Landings Championship (the worst score of the eight being dropped), while the last four were to be counted towards the landing segment of the National Precision Flying Championships.

As the landings proceeded, the Virtual flyers were flying the same landings on their computers at a virtual Britz runway. The airfield was busy indoors and out.
The wind increased as the day progressed. By lunchtime it was gusting down the runway and occasionally swinging to a 90 degrees crosswind. All in all, a real challenge for the afternoon. Add to that high temperatures which left most pilots very grateful for the gazebos provided by AOG at the landing line. The marshals were particularly hard hit by the strong sun – well done guys.

The afternoon session was a real eye opener. Even experienced pilots were battling the wind and some of the results were horrible to say the least. Even experienced pilots were caught out by the lift generated by the runway, and the variable crosswind pushed several pilots to the limit. Several landings were completely out of the box. One intrepid pilot even decided to eliminate the obstacle she was supposed to land over.

Many pilots finished the session dejected and frustrated at the number of penalties received. All the while the virtual pilots were fighting their own wars. As the judges performed the video reviews, the virtual boys had managed to finish their competition and the results were:-
Stephan Burger 1035 Junior Champion
Dawie Burger 1210 Senior Champion
Kyle Kunz 1520 Junior Runner Up
Andre Potgieter 1555 Senior Runner Up
Renaldo Potgieter 1570 Junior
JP Kruger 1755 Senior
Kyto Kunz 1870 Senior
The virtual pilots did themselves proud and are a credit to the sport.
Back at the clubhouse preparations were being made for the prize giving ceremony and all the partners and supporters were hurriedly working in the background to make the evening a success.

Once the landing results were included the final results for the South African National Precision Flying Championships 2010 are:-
Adrian Pilling Gold Medal & Landing Champion
Hans Schwebel Silver Medal
Ron Stirk Bronze Medal
Jan Hanekom Observation Trophy
Barry De Groot Navigation Trophy
Hans Schwebel Best PPL
Mary de Klerk Best Lady
Brits Flying Club Best Club
North West Province Best Province
The results for the South African National Landing Championships 2010 are:-
Adrian Pilling 118 Gold Medal
Mike Cathro 162 Silver Medal
Hans Schwebel 242 Bronze Medal
Barry de Groot 318
Ron Stirk 322
Jonty Esser 382
Dale de Klerk 474
Jan Hanekom 480
Frank Eckard
Mary de Klerk
Steve Van Der Merwe
Rob Kennedy
Thys Van Der Merwe
Walter Walle

This National Championship is particularly important as it forms one of the two part qualification process for the upcoming 20th World Precision Flying Championships to be held at Brits in October 2011. Congratulations to everyone who took part, especially those who earned a place on the podium.

As part of the Award ceremony, Hans Schwebel presented Tony Russell and Frank Eckard with their badges as International Judges.

As usual there are numerous unmentioned people who make our enjoyment of these events possible, and make their organization seem easy. I would like to give tribute to them. As usual, Brits Flying Club excelled itself. A special thanks to Ursula Schwebel, Nella van der Walt, Brenda van den Berg, Tinka Hannekom and Renata for all their work around the club house and to Tyren Henderson, Dewald Hatting, Piet van den Berg, Cally Eckard, Sandy Goddard and Johannes Hermann for their assistance as marshals. I for one know that they will do a smashing job of hosting World Precision Flying Championships in 2011.

2010 Landing Results

2010 Precision Results

2010 National Precisions – Gallery

The day finally dawned and the rain gods let up enough and the race was on!

The 2010 on again off again Unlimited Challenge Air Race at Witbank (eMalahleni) was given the green light and it happened as well as expected. Sadly a large number of competitors pulled out literally on Friday night and Saturday morning due mainly to the doubtful weather and the changing of dates.

However, The Witbank hospitality was of its normal high standard and the quality of competitor was outstanding. Some of the highlights were Richard Maier in his deadstick racing King Air, the pocket rockets, the diesel 182 and, of course Ron Wheeldon in the amazing Hunter. Ron and co-pilot Gary Hughes set a new World Record (provisional) at a massive 908km/h. The next record for the Hunter to beat is the 1000km closed circuit record which was set in 1965 at 859 km/h.

It was interesting to see a piston twin nail the King Air as were a number of other interesting results on the day. See below for full results.

The format of the race us simple enough to replicate and, unless people want to make a weekend of it, it can be run on one day which keeps mummy and the kids happy. We would like to see it become a permanent feature on the SAPA calendar and it probably makes sense to have it in August as this fits in with other events as well as the weatherman.
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Number SA050
Class C (Aeroplanes)
Sub Class C1-g (Landplanes: weight 9,000 kg to less than 12,000 kg)
Group III (Jet)
Type of Record Speed over a Closed Course of 500 kilometres
Course/Location Johannesburg – Kimberley- Johannesburg (South Africa)
Performance 908.7 km/hr
Date 20/11/2010
Record Holder Ron Wheeldon/Gary Hughes
Nationality South African
Aeroplane Hawker Sideley Hunter T68 (ZS-HUN)
Engine 1 Rolls Royce Avon 207 (10 150lbs)
World Record? Yes – 16127
Status Current Record

Brits Airfield welcomed 35 airplanes on Saturday 13 November to celebrate the Peter Hengst Memorial Day. Peter was a loyal and active member of Brits Flying Club for many years, and the project is held annually in his honour. His wife, Crystal, was present, preparing breakfast and coffee for all the visitors.

The EAA and SAPFA members braved the heat to spend some time together and swap flying anecdotes.

SAPFA took the opportunity to hold a “Fun Precision Flying Competition”. 17 pilots took part, many of them contenders for National Precision Flying Championships which are scheduled for the end of November, also in Brits.

Hans Schwebel, chairman of Brits Flying Club, long-time Rally and Precision pilot, and the newly instated Vice President of the GAC (General Aviation Commission) of the FAI, put together a route that was both challenging and enjoyable. The normally rigid rules of Precision were relaxed slightly for the day, to enable pilots to adjust their skills from Rally Flying to Precision Flying. SAPFA are also trying to encourage more Rally pilots to attempt Precision, in order to expand the field available for National selection, and to improve South Africa’s chances next year at The World Championships.

Frank Eckard won first place, with up-and-coming Jonty Esser hot on his heels. Ron Stirk from Brits was placed third, and Rob Kennedy fourth. Congratulations to all the pilots who attempted Precision Flying for the first time.
Mike Cathro came first in the Sportsman class, with Keith Irwin second, Wynand Uys third and Rob Jonkers fourth.

Thanks to Brits Flying Club for hosting the event, to Hans for preparing the route, to Crystal and Ursula for preparing the delicious breakfast, and to Nella for running the club.

Brits Flying Club has generously offered to host the World Precision Flying Championships in October 2011, and if Saturday’s event is anything to go by, then our local and overseas visitors are in for a treat.

FULL RESULTS

2010 Brits Fun Precision Rally 13 th November 2010
OPEN CLASS
Pos. Reg Pilot Theory Mkrs Flight Photo Other Landings Total
1 MOC Frank Eckard 0 0 474 40 0 0 514
2 EYS Jonty Esser 0 0 588 40 0 0 628
3 IWD Ron Stirk 0 0 598 80 0 0 678
4 FHD Rob Kennedy 0 0 696 100 0 0 796
5 KNH Adrian Pilling 0 0 947 60 0 0 1007
6 CNZ Walter Walle 0 0 1037 40 0 0 1077
7 FDK Jan Hanekom 0 0 1303 40 0 0 1343
8 CNZ Steve van der Merwe 0 0 1690 100 0 0 1790
SPORTSMAN CLASS
Pos. Reg Pilot Theory Mkrs Flight Photo Other Landings Total
1 CHJ Mike Cathro 0 0 762 40 0 0 802
2 EYS Keith Irwin 0 0 980 80 0 0 1060
3 ESO Wynand Uys 0 0 1314 140 0 0 1454
4 KEZ Rob Jonkers 0 0 1895 140 0 0 2035
5 DED Telly Thomas 0 0 1944 120 0 0 2064
6 FLF Ralph Hurwitz 0 0 1946 140 0 0 2086
7 IFY John Shaw 0 0 2109 100 0 0 2209
8 DED Senio Do Pereiro 0 0 2300 140 0 0 2440
9 FDK Alan Wesson 0 0 2218 320 0 0 2538
10 UFO Ben van Zyl 0 0 2500 320 0 0 2820
11 IRL Sean Murphy 0 0 2500 320 0 0 2820

 

Jonty Esser - Competition Director
Jonty Esser – Competition Director
By Jonty Esser

On the 18th of September 2010 a fun filled flying competition took place at Pietersburg Civil Airport, with competitors coming from as far as Gauteng and Hoedspruit.

These fun rallies are hosted by SAPFA (South African Powered Flight Association) and are held monthly at different venues. These fun rallies has been an innovative and genius format derived from the FAI (Fédération Aéronautique Internationale – The World Air Sports Federation) rally rules by SAPFA members, to introduce the sport to keen aviators, making it not only fun but competitive also focusing on enhancing pilot skills and constantly recruiting Pilots for the National team to compete in the World Championships.

The day started with the formalities of the highly important and comprehensive safety briefing presented by the safety officer of the day Mr. Leon de Villiers, followed by the Pilot’s and Navigator briefings presented by our Local Springbok, National Team member and Competition Director for this rally, Mr. Jonty Esser.

The navigators and pilots received their clue sheets and necessary blank maps, and immediately set off to work as the first take off was to be at exactly 11:00:00. Many of the competitors were first time rally pilots and navigators so help was at hand from the Competition Director. The route was setup to ease the new teams in up until check point 5 thereafter the degree of difficulty was increased. The route took the competitors from Pietersburg Civil Airport to Dalmada, then onto the University of the North from there out to the north then back to the Steven Lumber Mills, then back out to the Ebenezer Dam Wall, there after the climb for the Highest point in the Wolkberg Reserve flying down the mountain range to Chuniespoort and back to Pietersburg Civil Airport.

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By Cally Eckard
Grand Central, with its olde-worlde air and historic significance was a perfect location for a rally designed to fly over some of our rich and famous locations. From Nelson Mandela Bridge to Soccer City, over luscious golf courses, and from townships of Soweto to Sandton City, the teams thoroughly enjoyed the sights of Jo’burg while also concentrating on timing, navigation and safety.

For the first time, we held a briefing on the Wednesday evening before the rally. Most of the pilots attended, and many of them achieved really good results. This briefing was really helpful, as maps and instructions were handed out, and we all “flew” the route together on Google Earth, finding most of the photographs, and identifying features which helped the teams to fly the route more accurately during the rally.

The fifteen teams included two helicopters, which were of great interest to everyone, spawning arguments over whether rally flying in a helicopter would be an advantage or not.

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